1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an arm sleeve, and more particularly to a sanitary arm sleeve structure for use in the clinical profession or with treatment of animals for various industries or for veterinarian use, so that it provides a cleanable protective layer at a lower arm portion of the arm sleeve so as to prevent bacteria penetration, dirt or blood or body fluid entry through the arm sleeve.
2. Description of Related Arts
During a physical check up or surgery, doctors or nurses and any health providers that are in contact with patients or animals are required to wear surgery or exam gloves and clinic coats and scrubs to prevent body contamination. The surgeon's glove, which is made of plastic, latex or nitrile, etc., is disposable such that the physician is able to throw away the glove after every medical procedure to prevent contamination of the care provider or the other patients or animals. However, body fluids, blood or human and animal excrements may accidentally be coated onto the sleeve of the clinic coat in that healthcare setting and be transfer from one area to another. There are disposable scrubs currently on the market these days but it is costly and wasteful that all clinic coats and scrubs be made of disposable material to prevent bacteria and dirt contamination. The majority of protective clothing for healthcare providers is not disposable to this day.
Generally, health providers must wash their non-disposable clinic coats and scrubs after every surgery or daily for hygienic purposes; however, body fluids or blood from the patient/animal may get onto the coat sleeve and/or the shirt sleeve of the doctor during treatment. Therefore, the healthcare provider is unsanitary because the shirt sleeve and scrub is coated with contaminants. The doctor also has the above problem that the body fluids or blood from the patient/animal may contact directly onto the bare arm of the doctor through the opening of the sleeve during treatment. Likewise, any watches or wrist jewelry may also be contaminated. Since hundreds of patients and animals may visit the health provider every day, the contaminants coated at the sleeve and/or the arm may easily pass from the previous patient/animal to other patients or animals.
For hygiene purposes, the healthcare provider may certainly wear a sleeve protection at the lower arm portion to be protected from any infection from the patient/animal. Accordingly, the sleeve protection, which is made from washable material, has two elastic ends wherein when the arm of the user is inserted into the sleeve protection, the two elastic ends wherein when the arm of the user is inserted into the sleeve protection, the two elastic ends of the sleeve protection bind around the user's arm below the elbow and above the wrist respectively so as to retain the sleeve protection at the lower arm of the user. Such conventional sleeve protection can prevent the contaminants from coating on the sleeve; however, the sleeve protection has several drawbacks.
Since the two elastic ends of the sleeve protection must be securely bound at the elbow and the wrist of the arm respectively, the movement of the arm is restricted by the elastic ends of the sleeve protection. Also, different people have different arm and wrist sizes so the elastic may be too tight or too loose. Doctors require precise arm movements during surgery or diagnosis. In addition, when the doctor stretches his or her arm, the elastic ends of the sleeve protection may be forced to slide along the arm, such that the doctor must constantly adjust the position of each of the elastic ends of the sleeve protection. It is also a hassle to wear the sleeve protection device because the doctor must put the sleeve protection onto the outer side of the sleeve of the coat, which will destroy the professional appearance of the doctor. Therefore, the sleeve protection has disadvantages in practical use.
Current coats and scrubs may have a cotton covered elastic band at the end of the coat sleeve to bind the wrist to act as a barrier, but the elastic band has a cotton covering which is very absorbent to bacteria and liquid contaminants as it is porous and can transfer contaminants from one area of the health facility to the next. When doctors, veterinarians, and nurses put their arms on various surfaces to work and write, they can pick up contaminants and transfer them to other areas and to other patients with their contaminated arm sleeve and wrist band.